Echoes of Wisdom, Link’s Awakening, & Other Select Switch Games to Receive Free Updates to “Improve Playability” on Switch 2
Posted on April 02 2025 by Evan Hahn
Today, Nintendo offered some updates on the backwards compatibility of original Switch games with their new system. When Nintendo announced the Switch 2, they were quick to mention that the new system would be largely backwards compatible with the original Switch. Most physical and digital games should work without issue, they said, but they offered scant details until today.
According to a compatibility test published by Nintendo, nearly all of their 122 first-party games pass “basic compatibility testing” with no problems. Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 04: VR Kit is the only Nintendo-published game that won’t work, simply due to size constraints.
In addition, according to a new page on Nintendo’s website, several games will receive “free updates to improve playability on the Nintendo Switch™ 2 system.” Echoes of Wisdom and the Switch remake of Link’s Awakening are listed alongside a few other Nintendo games. Little is said about these changes, other than that they “may improve performance or add support for features such as GameShare in select games,” and that the updates vary. Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics had updates explicitly highlighted in the Direct, but the fate is unclear for the rest of the list.
Because so little is known, all we can do is speculate for now. Both Link’s Awakening and Echoes of Wisdom had performance issues, so it’s possible these updates will improve framerates and graphics on the Switch 2. These games might also have some software incompatibility that renders them unplayable on the Switch 2 without a patch.
It’s possible that these updates will bring significant new features or content, but I don’t think so. I suspect these will be minor performance and bug fixes that make the game smoother on Switch 2.
But what do you think? Will these updates be significant, or do you just think that they’ll fix little issues? Did the framerate drops in these games bother you when you played them? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Source: Nintendo
Evan Hahn is a computer programmer, technical author, and Zelda fan. Ocarina of Time is his favorite in the series but the Twilight Princess Picross game holds a special place in his heart. When he’s not coding, you can find him engrossed in Zelda news or enjoying beautiful Chicago.
